We were so honoured to be invited by Norton Disney History and Archaeology Group to join them on a three-day dig to explore the village's medieval past and its links with the Disney family.  Working with them and one of our original founders and now partner, Professor Carenza Lewis, we were offered 30 spaces, and these were filled with a variety of Service personnel and their families, we had RAF and Army personnel, single participants, full families and even 3 generations. 

The Wings to the Past participants supported the Norton Disney History and Archaeology Group to excavate test pits around the village, most situated in people’s gardens, many of the Wings to the Past participants had grown up watching Time Team and meeting the cast was a highlight of the weekend.  In the center of the village a team of archaeologists from Time Team dug larger trenches, they were trying to locate one of the earlier manor houses of the Disney family, who are believed to have left France and settled in the area following the Norman Conquest in the 11th Century.  It was hoped the dig would locate the remains of the property, which was knocked down in the 1600s, and discover how it was linked to the medieval period and development of the village. 

On the Sunday, in true Time Team style, it was decided to extend a test pit to a 1 m x 5 m trench and Wings to the Past were called to get the trench down to 20cm (it was known the top 20cm was sterile) in 30mins, mission accepted and accomplished, the trench then went on to locate a tiled floor believed to be from the early manor house.  The test pits found a palimpsest of the villages history with finds spanning the roman period to the modern day, 1 located a road surface likely to be associated with the manor’s residents walking to the church.  The Disney family - originally known as De Isney, then both d'Isigny and D'Iseny - are the ancestors of American animator Walt Disney, who visited the village in 1949 to trace his roots.  The dig took place between 4 and 6 October and will be aired in early 2025 by Time Team Digital, an offshoot of the long-running Channel 4 history series on their YouTube channel.

The Time Team episode will be released in 2025